DRAFT FINAL REPORT European Commission Directorate General XI Verification of vulnerable Zones Identified under the Nitrate Directive and Sensitive Areas Identified under the Urban Waste water Treatment Directive Belgium July 1999 Environmental Resources Management 8 Cavendish Square, London W1M 0ER Telephone 0171 465 7200 Facsimile 0171 465 7272 Email [email protected] http://www.ermuk.com DRAFT FINAL REPORT European Commission Directorate General XI Verification of vulnerable Zones Identified under the Nitrate Directive and Sensitive Areas Identified under the Urban Waste water Treatment Directive: Belgium July 1999 Reference 5004 For and on behalf of Environmental Resources Management Approved by: __________________________ Signed: ________________________________ Position: _______________________________ Date: __________________________________ This report has been prepared by Environmental Resources Management the trading name of Environmental Resources Management Limited, with all reasonable skill, care and diligence within the terms of the Contract with the client, incorporating our General Terms and Conditions of Business and taking account of the resources devoted to it by agreement with the client. 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CONTENTS 1 THE OBJECTIVES OF THE DIRECTIVES 1 1.1 INTRODUCTION 1 1.2 NITRATES DIRECTIVE 1 1.3 THE URBAN WASTE WATER TREATMENT DIRECTIVE 2 1.4 SCOPE 5 2 BELGIUM - THE CONTEXT 7 2.1 THE PHYSICAL CONTEXT 7 2.2 THE DESIGNATION PROCESS IN BELGIUM 11 3 FLANDERS 20 3.1 INTRODUCTION 20 3.2 SENSITIVE AREAS IDENTIFIED UNDER THE URBAN WASTE WATER TREATMENT DIRECTIVE 20 3.3 VULNERABLE ZONES IDENTIFIED UNDER THE NITRATE DIRECTIVE 20 3.4 SURFACE WATER QUALITY 25 3.5 MARINE AND COASTAL WATERS 34 3.6 NITRATES IN GROUNDWATER - AN OVERVIEW 38 3.7 GROUNDWATER QUALITY IN WEST-FLANDERS 41 3.8 GROUNDWATER QUALITY IN EAST-FLANDERS 44 3.9 GROUNDWATER QUALITY IN LIMBURG 45 3.10 GROUNDWATER QUALITY IN BRABANT 49 3.11 GROUNDWATER QUALITY IN ANTWERP 53 3.12 CONCLUSIONS - SHOULD OTHER AREAS BE DESIGNATED AS VULNERABLE ZONES?56 4 BRUSSELS-CAPITAL 59 4.1 DESCRIPTION OF THE REGION 59 4.2 WATER QUALITY MONITORING 63 4.3 THE URBAN WASTE WATER TREATMENT DIRECTIVE 66 4.4 THE NITRATE DIRECTIVE 66 5 WALLONIA 69 5.1 WATER RESOURCES IN WALLONIA - CHARACTERISTICS 69 5.2 VULNERABLE ZONES - THE DESIGNATION PROCESS 74 5.3 SENSITIVE AREAS - THE DESIGNATION PROCESS 77 6 REFERENCES 79 1 THE OBJECTIVES OF THE DIRECTIVES 1.1 INTRODUCTION The objectives of the Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive (UWWTD)1 and the Nitrates Directive2 are to reduce and prevent “pollution”, from urban waste water treatment plants and from agricultural nitrates respectively. Some aspects of the Directives are closely defined, others are – to some degree – left open to interpretation by Member States, individually or collectively. The waters that must be studied and identified under both the Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive (91/271/EEC) and the Nitrates Directive (91/676/EEC) are similar. Consequently, the examination of the identification of these waters has taken place concurrently during this study. This first part of the report reviews the objectives of the two Directives (including how they relate to estuarine and coastal sites) and examines Belgium’s interpretation of them. 1.2 NITRATES DIRECTIVE The Nitrates Directive deals explicitly and exclusively with pollution resulting from agricultural activities. The Directive defines pollution as direct or indirect discharges of “nitrogen compounds from an agricultural source into the aquatic environment” which, (among possibilities irrelevant to estuarine and coastal waters) causes “harm to living resources and to aquatic ecosystems.” The definition of eutrophication is identical to that of the UWWTD except that it is restricted to nitrogen compounds from agriculture. The Directive has a similar dual objective – the reduction of water “pollution caused or induced by nitrates from agricultural sources”, and “preventing further such pollution”. Article 3.1 requires the identification of polluted waters, and those which “could” be affected if action is not taken, according to the criteria set out in Annex I. This Annex simply states that “Waters referred to in Article 3 (1) shall be identified making use, inter alia, of the following criteria.” Three criteria are set out: 1. Whether surface freshwaters, in particular those used for the abstraction of drinking water, contain or could contain, if action pursuant to Article 5 is not taken, more than the concentration of nitrate laid down in accordance with Directive 75/440/EEC; 1Council Directive of 21 May 1991 concerning urban waste water treatment (91/271/EEC). 2 Council Directive of 12 December 1991 concerning the protection of waters against pollution caused by nitrates from agricultural sources (91/6765/EEC) ENVIRONMENTAL RESOURCES MANAGEMENT EUROPEAN COMMISSION - DGXI 1 2. Whether groundwaters contain more than 50 mg/l nitrate or could contain more than 50 mg/l nitrate if action pursuant to Article 5 is not taken; 3. Whether natural freshwater lakes, other freshwater bodies, estuaries, coastal waters and marine waters are to be eutrophic or in the near future may become eutrophic if action pursuant to Article 5 is not taken. 1.3 THE URBAN WASTE WATER TREATMENT DIRECTIVE There are a number objectives and requirements of the UWWTD that relate to the estuarine and coastal environment. The main elements are: • First, the stated objective, “to protect the environment from the adverse effects” of waste water discharges and “pollution” arising from waste water (Article 1); • In order to achieve this secondary treatment shall generally be required (Article 4); • However within ‘Sensitive Areas’ additional action is required, throughout the catchment area, for those treatment plants that contribute to “pollution” (Article 5.5). For estuaries and coastal waters the current or future potential for eutrophication is a criteria that results in their prescription as a Sensitive Area (Annex II). While Annex II allows some flexibility for “small agglomerations”, the requirement for “large agglomerations” is absolute: phosphorus and/or nitrogen should be removed unless it can be demonstrated that removal will have “no effect” on the “level” of eutrophication – a claim that a contribution will be ‘insignificant’ does not provide a defence for failure to implement. • In addition an estuarine or coastal water “must be identified” as a Sensitive Area where further treatment than that set out in the UWWT Directive is “necessary to fulfil [other] Council Directives”. • The Directive also allows for the creation of ‘Less Sensitive Areas’, LSAs, providing “comprehensive studies” demonstrate that discharges “will not adversely affect the environment” (Article 6.2). Such discharges must receive at least primary treatment. In estuaries this stipulation applies to discharges from “agglomerations” of between 2,000 and a maximum of 10,000 person equivalents, p.e.. Above this size LSA status is not allowed and the provisions of Article 4 regarding secondary treatment apply. In coastal waters the equivalent limit is 150,000 p.e. • Estuarine discharges under 2,000 in estuaries or under 10,000 p.e. in coastal waters must, by 2005, receive “appropriate” treatment – that necessary to meet the “relevant” aspects of this and other Directives. ENVIRONMENTAL RESOURCES MANAGEMENT EUROPEAN COMMISSION - DGXI 2 • Other Directives relevant to estuaries and coastal waters included those relating to hazardous substances, bathing water, shellfish, and habitats and species protection. 1.3.1 Criteria for identification of sensitive and less sensitive areas (a) Sensitive areas A water body must be identified as a sensitive area if it falls into one of the following groups: • natural freshwater lakes, other freshwater bodies, estuaries and coastal waters which are found to be eutrophic or which in the near future may become eutrophic if protective action is not taken. The following elements might be taken into account when considering which nutrient should be reduced by further treatment: • lakes and streams reaching lakes/reservoirs/closed bays which are found to have a poor water exchange, whereby accumulation may take place. In these areas, the removal of phosphorus should be included unless it can be demonstrated that the removal will have no effect on the level of eutrophication. Where discharges from large agglomerations are made, the removal of nitrogen may also be considered; • estuaries, bays and other coastal waters which are found to have a poor water exchange, or which receive large quantities of nutrients. Discharges from small agglomerations are usually of minor importance in those areas, but for large agglomerations, the removal of phosphorus and/or nitrogen should be included unless it can be demonstrated that the removal will have no effect on the level of eutrophication; • surface freshwaters intended for the abstraction of drinking water which could contain more than the concentration